I Hope I Didn't Make Her Cry

Today felt like it went by in a blink of an eye.

The phone wasn't ringing off the hook like it was yesterday which was ok for me today because I was busy making outbound calls. Something I like to do that my hillbilly dad calls 'Cross-Hairs'. I'm not really sure I understand his reason for calling what I do that term, but it sticks so now I call it that as well. 

What I do is this, I simply call the people I've already connected with that will recognize me by name or voice or both, someone I actually know or that knows me etc....

I ask them if they know a great Realtor and tell them I'm in need of some assistance, buying some houses. I continue the conversation with them and just engage in polite conversation. At some point I'm also asking if they've heard of anyone selling their house, this usually draws up a whole other conversation about foreclosures, this, that etc..... I'll also see if I can fit in a few more questions like if they have any friends who are renting houses and about how much do they pay in rent. 

I do this in a coversational way, what I'm doing is probing for information and letting the person tell me the things I want to hear without asking directly. Even if I know you slightly, you'd probably be a little reluctant to tell me that you're sister is renting a house for $800 a month and her landlords name is and his/her phone number is and Suzy from three doors down mentioned last week that she's having troubles because her husband Bobby hours were cut at work etc.... 

If you do this in a conversational manner, people love to chat and gossip, I'm ready right there with my pen and paper writing down relevant information. By the time I'm done with you, I'm looking at a few leads fresh from a 'warm' source. Now, when I contact those leads, I use the connection between us as my 'warm' approach, bettering my chances of having open and willing communication between us. 

How I do it exactly with Realtors is simply make the connection and start a conversation about the current market conditions and sales activities, just real basic stuff to get a feel for them and see if I believe we would work well together. I'll start talking about how I've been providing housing for a little while and I would ask what she's seen lately as to what buyers have been looking for etc.... I'll then mention that if she didn't mind, I could tell her about some houses that I would be selling with owner financing for some of those clients of hers that may or may not qualify for traditional mortgages and present it as an additional tool for him/her to have for their clients. I'll get what contact info I don't have and continue the conversation now that I've built something with them. I'll go on to mention how I was looking for a good mortgage broker the other day and then compliment him/her by saying, "You probably know a great mortgage broker, I bet you're smart enough to pre-qualify your buyers before looking for houses with them"  or something similar to that. Just easy conversation and letting it go where it goes. 

These conversations don't last hours, sometimes, you realize that you're wasting your time pretty quick and other times the conversation goes so well that your questions and conversation gets more direct quicker. You really have to learn to adapt. 

The one thing I'm always doing though is connecting and using those connections to build more connections. When I talk about using one 'warm' connector to connect with someone else and how that instantly builds some rapport with the person(s) I'm connecting with because I merely made mention of our 'In Common' connection. Does that make sense?

Now, on to how I hope I didn't make her cry. 

I was on Facebook and noticed a 'friend' of mine was having trouble. We don't really know eachother personally, our boys play baseball in the same fall season league but not in the same age group and that's about it. I offered to see if I could help her and she replied back jokingly that only if I knew someone with a used pair of size 7 mens basketball shoes for her older kid. She said it jokingly but you could tell she meant it and it was obvious she was having troubles. She's mentioned before that she's struggling financially as she's been out of work and frantically looking. Christmas wasn't really going to happen for her or her family because of finances. You know, real tear jerker stuff.

I decided I was going to be a little sneaky. 

I found out her address and went earlier today after making a few hours worth of phone calls to the nearest shoe store. I went in and bought her son a pair of size 7 basketball shoes. I then went to CVS and bought a Christmas card for this young man who I do not know but felt deserved a new pair of basketball shoes. I wasn't sure of the address but I still drove there and it seemed like someone was home but I still wasn't sure it was the right address. I pull up in front of the house, I noticed something that confirmed I was at the right house, walked up, put the box of new shoes and the Christmas card on the doorstep, rang the bell and ran back to my car and quickly drove away. 

I didn't put my name on the card, I didn't tell her I was going to buy her kid a new pair of shoes, I'm sure she could speculate that it was me because of her remark about the shoes, but there isn't any proof it was me other than this post LOL!!! 

It was just a nice thing to do for someone that needed something nice done for them. As I was driving home feeling great that I wasn't caught I started thinking about the reaction once the box is opened. I thought to myself, I hope she doesn't cry and then like a big 'ol wuss that I am, I started tearing up a little thinking about if she was going to tear up. I'm such a baby. 

So, that's it for now, I think I'm going to take the weekend off and get back to work on Monday. It was a good day for me and I hope you make it a good day for yourself and even someone else while you're at it.